With the introduction of the Oura Ring Gen 3, the whole business model for the company was changed. Oura has never exclusively been a tech company and they have invested in the technology platform around their smart rings. With the new ring, they introduce the Oura Membership, a subscription that cost $5.99/month.
According to the company the membership is not just an add-on to the product, it is the product. It’s a natural shift as many markets move to a subscription-based economy and also this is a way to cover the running costs for the service. The team invest in new research, and technology like the SpO2, and want you to weigh the added cost against the continuous value you get from the Oura Ring, mobile app, cloud app, algorithms, personalized insights, and content.
The Subscription is a change, the good thing is that the old generation 1 and 2 will still have their insights free of charge. The question is for how long as the battery inside the ring is consumable and will eventually wear out. There are some things to consider when charging the Oura Ring to prolong the lifetime of the device
The cost of the Oura Membership
New customers who purchase a generation 3 ring receive six free months of Oura Membership. After the free trial period, monthly pricing is:
- US: $5.99 before tax
- EU: €5.99 after tax
- Rest of the world: $6.99 after tax
An important thing to know is that the Oura membership is tied to your Oura Account, not your physical Oura Ring. The result is that if you purchase an additional ring with an existing Oura account, you will not receive another six free months of Oura Membership.
Using The Oura Ring Without Subscription
You can use the Oura Ring without a membership, the downside will be that it only has some limited functionality activated. No advanced stats or insights, only the three daily Oura scores, ring battery, basic profile information, app settings, Apple Health and Google Fit integrations, and the Explore Tab. A good thing are that you can still download your data from the Web.
- Readiness Score: How ready are you for the day?
- Sleep Score: How well did you sleep last night?
- Activity Score: How are you balancing your activity, inactivity, and rest?
Still, it makes the ring almost useless for most people as it’s the advanced data that’s important and will give you the most insights. These scores will not show you the needed information and could also be delayed.
The Oura Lifetime Membership
The Oura lifetime membership was available for Gen 2 users who purchased a Gen 3 at the launch of the ring. It’s also possible to get a lifetime membership if you buy the Gucci X Oura Ring. Making it an interesting option as there currently is no option to purchase or upgrade to a Lifetime Membership.
A lifetime Oura Membership will remain free for Gen 3 and beyond as long as you have the same and active Oura account.
